Hum Tum Aur Ghost is my baby: Arshad Warsi
It's really hard to get back out when you've got under the skin of the character. But on meeting Arshad Warsi you'd not expect that. He leaves his character inside his vanity van when he talks about it. Outside, he is a much relaxed and a calm guy, someone who doesn't take his work seriously. On the flip side, you wouldn't even know how serious he is. "Would you like some biryani or sandwich?" Arshad asks me kindly. Biryani with Warsi? You betcha. I watch him eat silently for a few moments, one occasionally offering each other appreciative smiles from our respective seats. It's 3pm at the actors new and an almost furnished Andheri office. His next film Hum Tum Aur Ghost has him playing the lead man who can see dead people. What's more, he has also turned producer with this film. It's a film that only a man with a spring in his step, hope in his heart and some biryani on his plate could carry off. Arshad Warsi has all of those things and more. This correspondent met the actor and found - good guys, bad guys, confused guys - when Arshad Warsi takes a role (as an actor and a producer and soon to be a director) he takes it seriously.
So...you're
in
demand
again
Arshad.
Finally
taken
seriously
by
directors?
I
try
to
do
some
serious
work
and
I
hope
the
directors
take
it
seriously.
Unfortunately,
films
like
Ishqiya
and
Munnabhai
come
my
way
very
rarely
and
I
do
not
understand
why.
I
fail
to
answer
that
question.
Nobody
wants
to
offer
me
a
role
even
after
I've
proved
myself
over
and
over
again.
But
I
guess,
that's
my
destiny
and
I
quietly
accept
it.
Welcome
to
the
domain
of
writers
Arshad.
(Laughs)
Thank
you.
I
am
a
writer.
I
think
sometimes
things
happen
and
writers
are
born.
That's
how
I
was
born.
When
you
sit
down
and
try
to
think
too
hard
for
a
name
of
a
film
or
a
story
of
your
film
and
it
doesn't
come
by,
you
should
stop
thinking.
And
then
when
you
forget
about
the
idea,
it
suddenly
pops
from
nowhere.
That's
how
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
was
born.
No
inspiration
from
any
Hollywood
movie?
Oh
yes.
I'll
tell
you
about
it.
My
wife
Maria
was
watching
a
film
and
I
was
trying
to
pack
my
stuff
and
go
for
a
shoot
when
I
happened
to
watch
the
film
which
had
Robert
Downey
Jr.
in
it.
He
could
see
dead
people.
I
thought
the
character
was
pretty
cool.
But
at
the
end
of
the
day,
I
thought
if
a
proper
Hindi
film
could
be
made
with
all
the
values
intact,
we
can
make
it
worth
a
watch.
Dia
ain't
a
desi
tamancha,
is
she?
(Laughs)
No,
not
at
all.
She
is
too
sweet
to
be
a
desi
tamancha.
She
is
completely
opposite
of
it.
She
is
a
bouquet
of
flowers.
She
is
a
sweet
little
thing.
She
is
very
practical,
sweet
yet
solid
and
she's
the
kind
of
girl
with
whom
I'd
go
around
with.
She
is
my
kind
of
a
girl.
She
gets
her
act
together.
Her
morals
and
principles
are
intact.
She
is
one
of
the
few
sorted
girls
in
our
industry
who
ain't
been
used
to
her
full
potential
in
acting.
Is
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
a
cliche
Bollywood
film?
I
don't
identify
with
the
over
doing
mother
and
son
relationships.
When
I
see
all
the
television
serials,
for
me
that
is
seriously
regressive.
I
will
never
ever
go
into
that
zone.
I
think
we
are
'cool'
to
be
like
that.
My
writing
totally
reflects
how
I
am,
how
I
talk,
how
I
meet
people,
what
I
do,
how
I
party,
etc.
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
isn't
a
cliche
Bollywood
film.
It's
going
to
surprise
you.
And
didn't
you
think
of
any
other
ghost
than
Boman?
Apart
from
Boman
being
a
bully,
sweet,
nice,
cute
chap,
what
he
brings
on
the
table
is
dignity.
I
like
that
about
it.
Whichever
movie
he
is
a
part
of,
he
makes
it
look
classy.
That's
very
important.
But
I
also
had
an
angel
in
my
first
draft.
The
film
back
then
was
titled
'I
believe
in
Angels'.
I
wanted
Nasseruddin
Shah
to
play
the
angel.
It
was
pretty
much
a
special
appearance.
I
was
very
clear
that
if
Naseer
would
not
act
in
the
film,
I'll
take
the
character
out
of
my
film
and
that's
how
the
Ghost
was
born.
Welcome
Boman!
Can
we
now
talk
to
Arshad
the
businessman?
Don't
even
try
to.
He
is
very
bad.
He
sucks.
Yes,
I
have
turned
producer
and
this
is
my
first
production.
I
have
treated
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
as
my
baby.
I
have
nurtured
it
to
the
fullest.
Very
honestly,
I
am
really
bad
when
it
comes
to
production.
I
am
good
in
writing,
acting,
etc.
I
can't
get
into
this
number
game.
I
have
invested
a
lot
in
this
film.
There
was
'no
worries'
and
'ok,
get
that',
etc
on
the
sets.
There
was
always
a
'yes'
for
an
answer
and
that
I
need
to
change
if
I
want
to
be
a
good
producer.
But
Arshad
the
person
doesn't
need
to
change,
Arshad
the
producer
needs
to
learn.
I've
given
too
much
love
to
my
cast
and
crew
and
I
made
sure
that
everyone
got
everything
on
and
off
the
sets.
What
day
was
it
when
you
first
put
your
thoughts
on
pen
for
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost?
I
wrote
this
film
in
the
oddest
manner.
It
beats
the
idea
of
writing
(laughs).
The
whole
concept
of
going
to
New
York
to
write,
London
to
write,
etc
is
baseless.
I
don't
write
by
locking
myself
in
the
room.
I
wrote
this
while
I
was
shooting
for
Krazzy
4.
I
used
to
do
the
shot,
come
in
my
van
and
type
on
my
laptop.
This
is
my
personal
method
but
I
like
to
work
like
this.
I
have
this
gut
feeling
that
I
am
bang
on.
I
want
to
know
my
climax
of
the
film
before
I
start
writing
the
start
scene.
The
rest
isn't
a
problem.
But
why
opt
for
a
genre
like
this
in
your
debut
production?
For
me,
any
kind
of
story
should
have
soul.
I
feel
action
films
lack
soul
but
can
work
sometimes.
If
it
doesn't
have
soul,
it
is
pointless
making
that
film.
Action
films
don't
work
for
me.
Comedy
does,
and
if
infused
with
a
bit
of
tragedy
and
romance,
it
always
works.
In
action,
if
you
make
a
Krrish
or
a
Mission
Impossible,
it's
a
different
ball
game.
A
film
should
touch
your
heart
somewhere
and
you
should
be
able
to
identify
with
it
at
some
point
while
watching.
And
what's
the
moral
of
the
story?
The
moral
is
what
you
take
from
a
film.
For
me,
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
is
about
how
powerful
your
true
love
can
be.
If
you
really
love
someone
with
true
heart
and
honesty,
it
can
do
wonders
or
it
probably
makes
you
realise
how
bizarre
it
is
sometimes.
Do
you
have
anyone
in
mind
before
you
write
as
far
as
the
cast
is
concerned?
An
actor's
job
is
to
play
the
character.
I
don't
want
to
write
a
film
for
Tom
Cruise
or
Shahrukh
Khan.
I
want
both
of
them
to
play
that
character.
That's
the
difference.
When
I
wrote
the
character
of
myself
in
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost,
I
didn't
decide
that
I'll
write
it
for
myself.
After
penning
it
down
and
after
tracing
the
many
dates
of
other
actors
and
checking
their
availability,
I
came
in.
Sum
up
Hum
Tum
Aur
Ghost
in
one
word?
Beautiful.